Reasons to immunize your child

Many parents come up with excuses for delaying their child’s immunization (vaccination)or skipping it entirely. Some parents feel their babies are too young and delicate to receive strong vaccinations, some find it extremely difficult to see their child go through the procedure. Difficult as it may seem, if you are a parent it is important that you keep one important factor in mind. Without timely vaccinations, your child is extremely vulnerable to a host of diseases. Below, we mention some reasons as to why vaccinations are very important for a child and what happens when you do not keep up with the immunization schedule.

Immunisation starts with you! If you are pregnant, you should be vaccinated for rubella. If you contract rubella in your first trimester, your baby is at risk of being born with congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) that causes developmental delays, deafness and heart defects.

When you immunize your child against preventable diseases, you not only protect your own child from developing those diseases but also prevent other members of society from contracting them. Remember there are some special groups of people, like those with compromised immune system who cannot be vaccinated (e.g. People with cancers and other health conditions).

If you fear getting your child vaccinated because he/she might develop some allergic reaction or some other side effect to it, you might want to think again. Vaccines and their effects are carefully reviewed by scientists and medical professionals. If the vaccines are stored and administered in the rightful way, there is a very rare chance of occurrence of side effects due to vaccinations. In any case, the benefits of vaccinations significantly surpass the risks associated with it.

Vaccine preventable diseases can cause prolonged or permanent disability in children and cause parents financial constraints, and also cause loss of work hours. The psychological side of seeing your child suffer with illnesses goes without saying. On the other hand, if you vaccinate your child, you can ensure your child remains safe from several preventable diseases.

You contribute to the good health of future generations

Some diseases that once claimed the lives of thousands of people around the world are now either eradicated or under control with the use of vaccines. For example, polio has been completely eradicated from the United States and many other countries.

In India too, the polio eradication initiative has shown remarkable results and its success will depend on the continued support of responsible parents like you. Disease prevention through vaccination can ensure your children grow up into healthy adults and protect future generations from being affected by those diseases.

1. Today most schools require a copy of the vaccination card during admissions to ensure there are no incidents of vaccine preventable diseases from spreading and hampering the school activities.

2. Diseases like chicken pox, measles, etc. can be contracted not just during childhood, but also during adulthood. So if you child comes in contact with the virus at some point of time later in life, he/she still remains vulnerable to the disease.

3. If you delay your child’s vaccination, you leave your child vulnerable to those diseases for that particular period of time.

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